In this article you’ll learn the single personality trait that elite-tier businessmen and women hold in highest regard. According to billionaire Sheryl Sandberg (Board Member to The Walt Disney Company, Facebook, and more) ...it’s the #1 trait she looks for in her team.

In this article you’ll learn the single personality trait that elite-tier businessmen and women hold in highest regard. According to billionaire Sheryl Sandberg (Board Member to The Walt Disney Company, Facebook, and more) …it’s the #1 trait she looks for in her team.

The ugly truth here, is that most people don’t have it. They’re terrible at it…and it’s not doing them any favors. If you’re bad it it, there’s a very high chance it’s already stunting your success. I’ve seen one case after another where this is literally the only thing holding people back from getting that sexy raise, or pushing their business to the big leagues.

So what is it? Simple:“How do you handle feedback?”

If you’re anything like the average person, it’s something you dread. Getting feedback from clients, customers, or your boss can be a bad time. In fact, just hearing the word feedback is enough to make most people cringe. No one likes to hear about their shortcomings – especially not the person giving feedback was riled up enough to leave a review.

Dealing with feedback like a pro isn’t easy. I get it. So over the years I’ve developed a quick system that lets entrepreneurs not only disarm their clients’/boss’ rage…but also turn them into your biggest fans.

STEP 1:

It’s pretty natural to want to defend yourself when you feel attacked. But in this situation, trying to explain what happened will sound like you’re being defensive or coming up with excuses. Admit your mistake first. 99% of the time this is ALL you need to get them calm and on your side. This one simple move will let them know you aren’t going to try to wriggle out of it and from then on, they’ll be HAPPY to help you fix the problem by answering your questions.

This is absolutely CRITICAL if you want to have a rational conversation with them and part on good terms.

STEP 2:

Let them know you’re going to make it right. At the deepest level, people don’t care if a mistake was made. They just want to know that it’ll be fixed and they won’t have to deal with it again. As an added bonus, you’ve just hit the release valve on a LOT of pent up emotion. That means you save everyone from a lot of heated back and forth …and instantly win back your boss’ or your client’s trust.

STEP 3:

Listen carefully. Make a recording or take notes. Do whatever you need to do. If the mistake happened on your end, it’s probably something systemic — that is, you or someone in your business is using a system that makes it easy for this mistake to occur. The better you are about getting the details, the more likely you will be to fix the problem in one shot.

…and thanks to steps 1 and 2, your client or boss will be much more willing to help get you there.

STEP 4:

Make it right. You don’t need to fall on your hands and knees. You don’t need to beg for forgiveness, or set them up with an all-expenses paid trip to Hawaii. At the end of the day, people just don’t want to feel like they’re being scammed. Deliver what was promised, work out a new deal, or if you really can’t fix it, refund what they paid.

Equally important: create a process that prevents the issue from happening again. Make a checklist or create a process doc that gets used every time work needs to be done. In a perfect world, you’d have a process doc for EVERY vital task that each employee performs. By building clear rules around each task, you strengthen your business and push it one step closer to scalability.

A strong business relies on strong process. When you only have 1 or 2 big clients, it’s easy to correct your mistakes as they happen (and avoid making a better process). When you’ve got 20 clients…operating the same way just doesn’t cut it. All it takes is one systemic mistake…and you’d spend ALL your time and manpower fixing problems instead of delivering on time.

Good process docs do A LOT for your business.

They make it easy to train new employees.

And as you scale, they’ll save hundreds if not thousands of hours by actively preventing mistakes.

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And there you have it. One personality trait you absolutely NEED to succeed as an entrepreneur…and how to become VERY good at it if you aren’t already.

If you’re still bursting at the seams for startup advice, you might consider checking out my 7 Free Psych Hacker Masterclasses.

I teach students everything from conflict resolution to taking smart risks.